Musings
by RedDevilHunter
Summary: The name's Dante. I'm not one for regrets, and I'm not usually one for heartfelt confessions, but here I am. After getting a link to this site, I spent a few months looking it over. Lots of interesting stories here, but how about I tell you mine? I'm putting the rating up in case my language gets rough, and for the sensitivities of the young. "This show is for adults only." - D.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, so here it is.

Let's just say my name is Dante. I've been living under that name for a while anyway.

I got a mysterious text a few months ago. I think it was from my brother, but if it was, he used a phone then deactivated it.

He and I don't talk much. Hell, if I'm honest, we don't talk at all. I don't blame him. He figured out that demons don't live good, normal lives. Humans can, though.

No, his name isn't Vergil, but I'll call him that. Vergil lives as a human, with a good job and life.

Yes, I know his human identity, as corny as that phrase is, and no, I'm not saying.

He went to the trouble of sealing his demonic abilities and changing his physical appearance; it would be remiss of me to blithely give you his name.

Does that imply you'd know his name? Maybe.

Do you? Maybe, maybe not, but the internet is a great way to find people, even if there are thirty guys with the exact same name.

But I didn't write this to talk about Vergil, not directly. I wrote this because the text I'd been sent was a link to this site, the Devil May Cry category at fanfiction.

For all the writers on here, let me just say I'm not mad, if that's what you're worried about. I actually enjoyed some of the stories a lot. Some mildly, others not as much. Mostly, it's a writing quality issue, not content.

I even thought about just sending this to one of you and letting you post it, but after all the trouble I went to, it was easier just to do it myself on the account I had to make anyway.

Not one of your stories is anywhere near the truth, but considering most of you base your work on the video game canon, or a slightly altered version, I understand.

It would have given me the creeps if anyone had been close.

I wish our father had been the noble protector and defender that Sparda was. It would have made our childhood easier, mine and Verge's.

I do shorten his name, by the way, even though I understood both sides of that debate.

In the games, Dante and Vergil aren't close, so Dante wouldn't call his brother by a shortened nickname.

In a lot of the fanfiction, though "Vergil didn't jump", as one writer put it. They presumably grew close, since they work together, often even live together. I can see Dante calling him 'Verge' like that.

Like I said, I do.

Our father was a demon, full-fledged. I don't know if there is a distinction between demons and devils as some of the stories here say.

Our mom was a pretty, bright, vivacious girl. The epitome of sweetness and purity.

That's how Mom's stories made her seem, at any rate. She talked about her innocence. She talked about her life in wistful tones of color and light. Of happiness.

I could almost see it, when she was happy.

My father wanted to mess with her. Corrupt her, I guess. Not a Legend-dark-Lily sort of corruption, more like spoil her views on life.

Demons think that sort of thing is funny.

She met a charming, handsome young man who courted her and treated her well. When she told him she thought she was in love with him, he laughed and showed her his true face.

Not just his physical appearance. He told her things about the world, at least, as he knew them.

It broke her heart, then pissed her off.

She began chasing him, hunting him, determined to kill him for it.

Once, she caught up to him. At the time she thought she'd outwitted him, but later she believed he'd let her catch him.

They fought. In a literal and figurative sense, tearing at each other, screaming obscenities.

Then had vicious, angry sex.

That's right. Seems sort of like a love-hate thing, but I'm not sure it was.

He disappeared, she became angrier. Rinse and repeat.

After some years of this, she happened across a nice man. He made the moves on her, she went for it, then she attacked him. She believed it was the demon of course.

He wasn't, but he was fairly understanding.

She didn't tell him that her "ex-boyfriend" was a demon, only that he was not above disguising himself to trick her.

They began dating and as she fell in love with him, she stopped chasing the demon. They got married and decided to start a family.

Happy ending.

Except the demon wasn't thrilled about it. He'd had this girl's attention since she was a teen, and then she forgot about him.

For a yuppie, no less.

Yuppie - I'll call him Daniel - had business trips.

He really was a yuppie, in a lot of senses. Young, city-bred, a career man with a nice job. He did distance business meetings for his company in the days before online video conferences.

He was a good man, though. He loved Verge and me, even after the denouement.

Naturally, when he and Mom decided to start a family, they stopped all of their birth control methods.

Their baby-making efforts were quite enthusiastic.

Life went on. Daniel's business trips became more important and longer, so Mom would travel with him sometimes, especially international.

Occasionally, their nightly activities were more vigorous affairs than others. Sometimes, they just slept.

Don't mistake me. Mom and Daniel were happy, very happy. Seeing them together made her stories of what she had been before the demon seem plausible.

She eventually had good news for him: she was pregnant. They vigorously celebrated that night.

Daniel started making preparations, turning a little-used spare bedroom into a nursery, buying baby things, the works. He was ecstatic about being a daddy.

One night, he came in late, woke Mom up, and started making some aggressive moves on her.

All was well until he started kissing her stomach.

He recoiled as though stung.

"You're pregnant?!" he accused.

It didn't take much longer than that for Mom to realize who he really was, but before she could attack him, he left, apparently revolted by her condition.

She said nothing of this to Daniel and went back to being happy. She was thrilled to be rid of the demon, especially since she was happily expecting.

She birthed two healthy boys.

Yes, Vergil and I are identical twins, though not so identical now. I look like I always have, Vergil has

He's different.

We seemed to be rather normal boys, and we had the love of our parents until about age five. Or maybe only four. It's been a long time since then.

Vergil and I were fighting in the yard. I don't remember what it was about. Mom ran out to break it up, and we turned on her.

I honestly don't know which of us broke her arm.

I remember the sound of the snap, though.

She cried out in pain, and we burst into tears.

Daniel had been in the kitchen, preparing something for the barbecue we were having that weekend.

Mom was cradling her arm, resisting our efforts to come close. She was horrified by us. We were crying uncontrollably, both because she was hurt and because she rejected us.

Don't be too harsh. It can't be easy to find out that your children weren't your husband's, but a demon's.

A hated demon.

Daniel called an ambulance, smoothed things over with all the authority figures, and eventually calmed us down.

Mom told him the truth about her "ex-boyfriend".

There were tears in her eyes as she tried defending herself, explaining that she'd never known, never suspected that some of those night weren't with Daniel.

He took it well. He told her he loved her. He said he didn't care about the demon. That he believed her.

Then he said that she was wrong. No matter what else, Vergil and I were his sons, and that he loved us.

Yep, Daniel was a great guy.

He cried when she killed us.

Now you can be harsh.

She tried non-violent methods. Suffocation, drowning. Neither one worked, and we were too young to understand the funny new games she was trying to play.

When she stabbed me, then Vergil, that worked. For a while. Daniel came in after she'd done it, saw us, saw the blood, and tried to call an ambulance.

She'd threatened him, reminding him that we weren't even human. A demon's get.

Daniel was crying, cuddling us when we woke.

It was probably for the best that she was standing in front of us and Daniel was behind.

I can't really tell you what I was thinking. I only understood that Mom had hurt us, and I wanted to hurt her back.

Daniel kept us from her, struggling against our strength and ferocity until he somehow managed to calm us down.

He once, only once, told me what that was like.

"All four of us had blood all over. Your blood doesn't smell or look human. Not exactly. It has this strong smell. That's all I could think about, was the smell of your blood. I don't know how I held onto to you two. Squirming, writhing little demons reeking of strong blood. It's one of the worst memories of my life, Dante."

She forcibly put us up for adoption within a year of that, though she didn't try killing us again.

Daniel tried to stop her, tried to keep us, but she had him removed as father on our birth certificates, and gained complete custody over us.

Daniel divorced her. He made arrangements the day the custody paperwork handing us over to the state was signed. He later said he tried adopting us, but there were all kinds of legalities involved that prevented it.

Yeah, Daniel loved us.

Our father probably never knew about any of this. I don't think he had anything more to do with Mom after learning she was pregnant. I'm not even sure he knew her children were his.

I wonder if he would find the whole thing funny.

I assume that we, well I, look like him. Mom didn't have white hair and blue eyes.

Verge told me once that he met him. A random, ordinary-looking guy approached him, bluntly told him that he smelled like his family. Vergil was already living in his new life and shook his head, telling the man he didn't understand.

He said the man chuckled, sort of. It was a dark, rumbling gargle of a laugh.

Vergil is somewhat poetic.

The guy shifted his appearance. He looked very like I do, like Vergil did. Not enough that Verge thought it was me, though.

Then he shifted again, and this time he looked very demonic. The demon circled him, smelling him almost distastefully.

He growled something about humans and half-breeds that Verge didn't quite catch, then resumed his first appearance and left.

Vergil sent me this story in an email.

I talk to Vergil very little, as I said before.

Actually, I never talk to him. He sends me emails infrequently and a text once in a while.

I try replying to these things, but I never get a response, and often I find the number or address is deactivated.

Knowing his name and general location, I suppose I could go see him. I don't know what I'd say.

"Hey Verge! How's it going?" followed by his long, complicated, too-revealing inquiry on what exactly I was doing there and why.

Nah, better to let Vergil live his life, be happy.

He took the dissolution of our family hard.

We found ourselves in the strange position of being hard to adopt.

Eventually, as teens, quiet, respectful, brilliant Vergil was taken into an intellectual family.

His demonically-driven hormones and the family's teenaged daughter ended up doing something naughty. Mutual, but naughty.

He was emancipated, instead of thrown back into the system. I had to wait until I was legal.

I found him, though. I thought we'd live together, be our own family. He had already sealed his demon self and was working on altering his appearance.

He had always thought our looks were what kept away the potential families.

Later, he told me he was glad he'd changed his appearance before Devil May Cry came out.

Mom died in the interim. I don't even know what happened.

Verge sent me a text saying that Daniel wanted to see me.

When I met up with him, he said he'd found out Mom had died, but he didn't know the details. Daniel told me Vergil had sought him out after assuming his human life. They were trying to build a friendship, I guess.

I don't know how Vergil finds people.

I change phones and emails, but Verge always manages to get a hold of me when he wants to.

That has been the only time I've seen Daniel since being given up.

I don't know if he and Vergil still talk.

I don't know where Mom is buried, but every once in a while, I stop in a random church and light a candle for her.

Ever see that TV show about the hunters? Brothers in a cool car? I do what they do, in a way.

Devil May Cry, the shop, doesn't exist. I wish it did sometimes. Even a warehouse or office would be more of a home than I have now. Instead, I move from hunt to hunt, job to job. What I don't keep on my bike, I store.

Want an easy storage tip? Demon portals. Open a portal, find or build a place, secure it, close portal. No matter where you are on this side, when you reopen it, you're right there on that side.

You do need some measure of demonic power to open a portal like that, though. Being half demon helps me out there.

Depending on the case or job, I stay in motels, hotels, or client-provided accommodations.

If you're wondering why you don't hear about me or other hunters, you aren't considering the prudence of non-disclosure.

Not just for my privacy, for the sake of the clients, too. Some family that praises a hunter or brags about ridding themselves of some threat might as well put out the welcome mat to other nasties.

Monsters, ghouls, ghosts, and demons are like computer hackers, robbers, and safecrackers: the best way to make yourself a target is to say you're unbeatable or that you've faced down those things before.

Do you feel better knowing I'm out there or are you disappointed that "Dante" isn't really Dante?

I guess it doesn't truly matter either way.

I hardly expect anyone to believe this. I'm not even sure why I typed it up.

I'm still trying to figure out why Verge sent me the link.

Did he think it was funny? Was he disturbed by the twincest yaoi stories?

I thought they were absurdly funny.

Maybe he wanted to tease me about the Nero ones, or about the yaoi in general, since there's so much of it.

Or it could be some deeper, more thought-provoking reason.

If it was Vergil.

Still, everything considered, it would be funnier if I'd told him.

Who knows?

If you're reading this Verge, you know my number.

For everyone else, there's always the review function.

Or PM.

No, I'm not giving out my number, nor am I going to come by, meet you in person, go to your party, prom, homecoming, or whatever.

No social calls of any sort and definitely no booty calls.

But I guess if you wanted to ask something about me, or maybe one of my cases, I'd humor you.

I do have other things that occupy my time, and my internet access can be limited, but I can try.

Can't disappoint my fans after all.

* * *

I do want to warn you though. If you ask something, I'm going to answer it right here. I won't directly name the one who sent the question if it was sent through a PM, but the question and answer will be here for everyone to read.

-D.


	2. Chapter 2

I said I'd answer your questions, and I get the chance to prove it now. This one came from a PM:

Have you ever met your demon father and what would you do if you did?

Well, I hadn't, until Halloween this year. Weird night in my line of work. I was in a smallish city in Nebraska. Nebraska is some very nice countryside, full of fields and farmhouses. It gives you that quintessential feeling of family, home, diligence. The people are relatively friendly earthy folk. The land is very flat, and the weather is fairly cold this time of year.

Halloween is an unusual night because most of the non-human things prowling around are actually fairly harmless. They might not get out much otherwise, but October 31 is the one night humans don't seem to mind the strange.

Except in Roswell. _Every_ night is Halloween in that town. Those people are real oddballs.

Nebraska, though, is pretty tame. Some goblins had been wreaking havoc in a cemetery near a friend of mine. He's a Catholic priest in the area, he knows what I do, keeps in touch, and he calls me when he needs.

Nice guy. I call him Padre. He's not Latino as far as I know, though I'm not really sure what he is. Dark complexion, blue eyes, curly light brown hair. I'm pretty sure he's human, if I'm sure of nothing else.

Padre is one of my oldest contacts. I started hunting after my failed attempt to be a family with Verge. I was 18 and pretty fed up with how my life had gone so far. What had Vergil or I ever done to deserve where we each were? I decided to find our father. I had this notion that maybe there was a reason for it all, maybe something more than Mom's stories. Maybe she had made him more culpable and reprehensible than he really had been.

I found Padre instead.

He told me that no matter how I had came into this world, nor what had happened to me in it, I was here and I could make my own destiny.

He was the one who showed me the evils that were being done to others who were far more helpless than I.

He got me to confess, take communion, and eventually pledge myself in a crusade against those evils.

He damn near even talked me into seminary.

Dante, a Catholic priest: hell of an image, right? Padre is a very persuasive man.

In the end, I balked because I didn't want to be celibate. I find that funny now. I've had so much meaningless pussy at this point that I am mostly celibate.

Live and learn.

Or maybe just a strange fate.

No matter what else, whenever Padre calls, I head to Nebraska.

These goblins had been conducting their mischief for a couple of weeks prior to Halloween, celebrating some obscure goblin holiday.

It was mainly vandalism, but they'd scared the shit out of some caretakers and had summoned up other nasties, too.

On Halloween, I went out, found them, beat them up, incidentally killed a few, and sent the rest, as well as their more dangerous cohorts, back to the demon world. Job done, I went into the church to light a candle for Mom. I thought about waking Padre, seeing if he was up for a drink and a talk, maybe even confession. I hadn't had one in a while because I only ever confess to him.

Instead, I walked out and met a demon at the doors.

Demons can enter churches, although most refrain unless they're going for dramatic effect.

Very droll, demon humor.

I pulled my pieces on the demon. Ebony and Ivory. I made them after the first game came out; naturally, they're modeled after those guns, but I tell you, they were a bitch to make. They have to withstand my constant usage, whether I'm in my demon form or not, and I've learned that that can be very hard on firearms.

When he saw the guns, the demon just chuckled. It sounded almost like a gurgle, which reminded me of Vergil's email.

"You aren't the spawn I met before. That one was a weak thing, too diluted by its human blood. You are a powerful one, barely smelling human at all."

I didn't know whether to feel complimented or insulted.

He chuckled again, then his appearance shifted. He looked like a human with white hair, light blue eyes, and aristocratic features. He was well built, very handsome. It was a little disturbing to see how much he resembled me.

Of course I knew who he had to be.

"When I found the girl to be pregnant with child, I was disgusted. I knew she had a human lover that she used to forget about me, her true mate. I did not know that what she carried was mine."

He cocked his head at me.

"When I met the other one, I knew he possessed my bloodline, as well as the girl's, though I don't know how it became so polluted. Now, seeing you, I know he must have done it to himself."

I didn't answer. It wasn't his business what Verge had done, and if it kept this demon away from Vergil's nice human life, all the better.

"You have a fine potential, offspring, though you waste it on these petty kills."

"Well, I can't disappoint dear old Daddy, now. Maybe I should move up in the world by eliminating you."

"If you were going to, you would have done so by now, offspring," he answered dismissively.

I suppose he was right. There was no reason I shouldn't have just opened fire on him upon sight.

Not what I thought meeting my father was going to be like all those years ago.

"So if you don't care about the goblins, and you weren't expecting me, what are you doing here? One hell of a coincidence, Pop."

"There was power and an opening to the demon world here. I came to see what and who were responsible. Finding one of the wayward offspring of the girl was indeed a coincidence."

"She mean anything to you? You said she was your true mate."

"No, offspring, I am her true mate."

He eyed me carefully.

"You aren't of any use to me, offspring. Pity. I have so few."

He resumed his demon form and took flight. I snapped off a few shots at him, but they fell incredibly short.

I guess I won't be getting any invites to the family reunion this summer.

Padre came up from behind me.

"Are you all right, Dante?"

I shrugged, putting away my guns.

"Why not? Guess he's not what I thought, but who ever is?"

He offered me tea, and we had that talk after all, though my father wasn't mentioned again. Instead, I told him about my recent cases, and some of the countryside I'd seen since last talking with him.

I did end up confessing.

I told him about this story, too, I even asked if he were the one that sent the link.

He said he wasn't, and he suggested I try talking to Verge and Daniel.

I might take his advice. He is very persuasive after all, and he has a point. Between my twin, Daniel, and himself, I have enough family.

I do wonder about those other offspring of my father's. Are they full fledged demons, or are they like Vergil and me?

Should I care?

I honestly don't know what to feel about them.

Anyway, I hope that this has answered your question.

Yes, I've met him now, and I guess ultimately, I'll let him leave unharmed.

* * *

By the way, thanks Be Rose for the nice review. I'm glad that you like my voice and find me interesting and decent. Phillip Marlowe, huh? I'm flattered.

For everyone else, I'm still willing to take questions. Review, PM, whatever.

-D.


	3. Chapter 3

A nice barrage of questions this time.

I'll start with this one:

Your father said something about being your mother's "true mate." What is that, exactly? In stories I've read, not even talking about fan fiction here, I've only ever seen pairs like that being called mates. Is there some kind of difference?

A good question. I've seen a few nature programs about mates: penguins, squirrels. Humans don't exactly qualify in all honesty. I don't know about demons.

The demon said that he was Mom's true mate. I honestly don't know much about demon culture, so I don't have a clear answer. I can ask a few others I know, see what I can learn. I almost wish I'd asked him to clarify, but I kind of doubt he would have.

I believed him when he said I was of no use to him. I reciprocate.

I doubt I'll meet him again.

I found it interesting that he corrected me, saying she wasn't _his_ true mate, but he was _hers_. If I can make a conjecture based on his tonal inflection, I would say he meant that he was the only one she was supposed to be with. Like an abusive, possessive man saying that his girlfriend or wife belonged to him. That she can't see anyone else because she's with him, no matter the status of their relationship.

But that's just a guess, friend.

Sorry I can't give you a better answer.

As for the other questions:

The games and canon paint you as a fun-loving lone wolf or a lackadaisical devil-may-care reluctant hero. Dismissive, but always managing to do the right thing. Does this describe you? Are you a damsel-in-distress rescuing hero? Do you actually care about humanity or do circumstances just play out that way? Are you really a pizza hound? Tomato juice? Strawberry sundaes?

Am I a fun-loving lone wolf?

I don't know about that. I move from job to job, living in hotels. I barely keep in contact with what few friends and family I have. I eat a lot of takeout and diner food. Very lonely stuff.

Up side?

I see a lot of interesting places and meet a lot of different folk. I live simply. I don't have a lot of stress or regrets.

Except Vergil.

Honestly? I hate being separated from him.

He cut me out of his life with everything else demonic. We don't even share a face.

Have any idea what that's like? Your identical twin doesn't want to look like you?

Sometimes I want to stroll into the middle of his neat, perfect human life and say, "Fuck you, Vergil."

Other times I'm happy believing he's happy.

I do love what I do.

Padre instilled this concept of helping those in need, and I believe in it.

So am I reluctantly a hero?

No. I consciously made the commitment to do what I do.

I also don't believe the game's Dante is a reluctant hero. Maybe at first. Not later.

Do I manage to do the right thing?

I help those I can, in the ways I know. I've lost a few. It's a tough job and things don't always end happily.

Like Erin.

Am I a damsel rescuing hero?

If I were as poetically minded as Verge, I'd probably crank up Bon Jovi and think of myself as a knight errant, a freelance, a sellsword.

Sir Dante Blankshield.

Better or worse than Father Dante?

I've run across some damsels and rescued them. Even took a few back to my hotel after.

Don't do that much anymore. Survivor gratitude sex is kind of hollow afterwards.

And awkward. When it started making me feel dirty, used and abusive, I stopped.

Celibacy isn't as fun, but I feel better about myself.

Do I care about humanity?

Does anyone?

No, that's unfair.

Yes, I care about humanity. I've seen good, bad, and ugly in humanity. I've seen uglier still.

I've also seen beauty in humanity.

Maybe it's worth saving, maybe not. I'm not the one who gets to decide or even should. I save people. Maybe I'm winning battles while we're losing the war, but I care enough to do it every single day.

I was waiting for the pizza question.

Pizza, strawberry sundaes, tomato juice, red leather, I figured it would be the first stuff asked.

Ever seen the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie?

When asked, "You like pizza?" in incredulous tones, one of them answers, "Who doesn't?"

Yeah, I like pizza. Who doesn't?

Do I live exclusively on pizza, strawberry sundaes, and alcohol?

Fuck no.

I eat a lot of diner food. I mentioned that. Asian and Mexican takeout and pizza are kind of backup plans.

A lot of little towns in the middle of the country roll up the sidewalks pretty early. Getting food can be tough so I make do with delivered fast food or pizza.

I like strawberries just fine. Strawberry rhubarb pie is likely my favorite.

Tomato juice, orange, grape, apple, grapefruit, whatever. I usually mix my own drinks, sometimes with alcohol, sometimes just soft drinks or club soda with fruit juice.

I don't get really fancy with liqueurs and syrups because of time and availability.

I always get a kick out of the look a waitress gives me when I ask for some fruit juice and a soda.

I had an interesting case at a little diner a few years back.

I was just passing through a small town, stopped for a bite to eat, and was assaulted by a poltergeist when I walked in the diner.

Haunted diner. Sounds lame, I know.

When the activity spiked, they'd just close early.

They were preparing to do so that day.

I told the waitress that if she could convince the cook to make me a nice rare steak with all the amenities, I could take care of their problem.

Deal made, I took some sage from the kitchen and burned it to put the pest at bay long enough to get some food and to prep my other stuff.

I had everything set up by the time my chunk of beef was done.

Good food there.

Had the waitress cut an orange soda with root beer. Her eyebrows disappeared into her hairline, but she was a pro. Nary a word.

After my damn fine meal, I waited for the poltergeist to try something.

I had a strong crystal trap set up, and the moment it messed with something, it was caught and sealed.

They were grateful once they were convinced it had worked.

They even tried to give me the steak dinner free, but I slipped enough into each tip cup to cover everything.

That place had lost enough custom over that damned ghost, and they hadn't asked for my help, I'd offered.

Couldn't justifiably charge them for that.

I've noticed that I have a tendency to ramble off point.

Personality quirk, or the need to talk?

You decide.

Hope that answers your questions, friend. If you have more, you know how to ask.

On the note of true mate, I'll keep looking. The information probably isn't important now, since the demon's gone to parts unknown, and Mom's dead, but you never know.

Might be important after all.

If you read this Vergil, don't worry, I'm not going to mess up your nice human life with my demonic presence.

But I'm not going to say I didn't mean any of it.

Maybe Padre is right.

Maybe we need to talk, Verge.

For all the rest of you, review and/or PM.

I'll get back to you eventually.

* * *

Same thing still goes: you send me your questions and/or comments, I'll do my best to answer them. PM and reviews both.

-D.


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry to all you readers and fans. I've been in Tennessee working a hell of a case. Simple exorcism my sweet ass.

I did warn you that this would be irregular, and I'm actually keeping up with it better than I thought I would.

From a review: DO you have a thing for red leather?

Yep. Guilty as charged. I own four full-length red leather coats.

I also own leather pants, vests, gloves, chaps, and boots. Mostly in black or brown.

I admit to basing some wardrobe choices on Dante. Hell, why not?

Demons have a wicked sense of humor, and I'm not immune to that.

On a more practical note though, I ride a bike everywhere and have a dangerous occupation. Leather is tougher material, more than up to the challenge.

Never underestimate denim, though.

I have plenty of denim jeans.

Next set of questions are a lot deeper than my wardrobe. Pardon the slight rephrasing on your query, friend.

Vergil is a half-breed like you, right? Wouldn't his offspring possess the same demonic genes he has? How would he react to such a situation if it arises? Has your demonic side ever gotten out of control? As in 'the need to overpower your human form' and 'slowly changing you into something that is inhuman'. Similar to bloodlust. How about it?

I hadn't really thought about it much, but yeah, just because Vergil sealed his demonic power and altered his appearance doesn't mean he's not still half-demon.

Our father still smelled his demon heritage.

As I've said, Verge and I don't talk.

Knowing how brilliant Vergil is, though I'll make a wager on one of two possibilities.

Either he doesn't know he hasn't made himself truly human and will shock himself and his partner with half-breed offspring, or he reckoned the fact into his plans and takes every precaution not to breed.

If he still smells demonic, he must still have some vestigial abilities, too. Maybe he withstands injury or is a quick healer. Maybe he has quick reflexes or is strong for his build or size.

If he has any of those noticeable traits, he definitely knows, and he won't take a chance on children.

It's kind of ironic. He could probably easily find someone out there willing to have a quiet, not-evil Vergil for a mate. Instead he hides.

If on the offhand chance he isn't aware and doesn't take precautions, he's going to have a lot of 'splaining to do.

Mom loved that show.

His partner pops out some white-haired little being with unusual traits, he'll likely not take it well.

Whether those traits would be latent, like ours, or physical like Nero's in the game canon, I don't know.

A son with a demon arm would sure rock Vergil's world.

Now I'm excited to see that happen.

My demon side. I was waiting for this one, too, though not exactly this question.

Yes, I have a demon side, a fully demonic appearance, like my father does. I don't typically call it a trigger.

My demon side isn't exactly what you think. I don't have mental arguments with a demon in my head, I don't have different urges as a demon than I do as human.

But I'm not exactly the same, either.

Ever been drunk or high enough to feel ten feet tall and bulletproof?

Being in demon form is like that.

Except I really am that powerful.

Being powerful like that is a kind of drug in its own right.

I take more joy in what I do as a demon. My senses and abilities are somewhat enhanced. The sensation is exhilarating. Killing is more fun, walking is more fun, pissing is more fun. I feel everything in different ways, wind, rain, everything.

Hard to describe.

Do I lose control? I don't control my demon. I don't sublimate it or push it aside.

It's not even an it.

Do I become inhuman? I'm not human to begin with.

Do I care less about humanity? Become inhumane?

No. I still carry my beliefs with me, and they still carry the same weight.

Is it like bloodlust?

Yep. Very much, but I don't really go for gratuitous violence.

That's one difference between me and Dante.

He goes for style. He's flashy. Ostentatious.

I'm usually not.

Can I pile shot upon shot to drive a sword into a statue? Sure.

Can I run down a building? Yep.

Can I surf a missile? Absolutely.

Have I done these things? Rarely, if ever.

I don't spend much time as a demon, though.

Usually it makes it harder to get paid or even deal with clients and other humans when I'm in demon form.

Finally, these: Are you really as good-looking as the games, etc. suggest? Or are you actually an ugly, creepy bastard? Or somewhere in between? Do you wish you had a real partner or mate?

Ah, ba- friend.

I do look something like Dante. Or he looks like me. I'm older of course.

And I have somewhat cultivated that resemblance.

Not only does it appeal to my sense of humor, but like you, I'm a fan.

I like Dante. What he stands for. What he represents.

There are more reasons. I'm not going to go into them.

Am I ugly? Nah, not ugly. Am I creepy? Maybe.

I have a presence. Most times, most humans don't notice. When I'm feeling some very strong emotion, or I'm close to taking my demon form, it's more noticeable. I can and have assumed my demon form unintentionally. It's somewhat linked with my emotional and physical states, meaning when I'm too keyed up it can happen, or if I'm too beat up it can. I don't have the second form that the game's Dante does.

Daniel actually told me about my presence.

I've been to see him since I first posted.

I told him what I'd been up to. About this.

He laughed his ass off.

Then he told me it was probably good for me, and I should keep it up.

My presence is at least "not human" to most of those who notice. Spiritual, religious, and psychic types call it "demonic".

I suppose that presence is creepy.

But pure looks? Nope. I turn heads.

As for my bastardism, well, my twin and I are illegitimate, perhaps made more so by Mom's abandonment of us.

Yeah, I grant that I'm a bastard.

Do I want a real partner?

I lead a lonely life. I admit that.

I'd like a real home.

A family.

I'm not sure if I could inflict my heritage, lifestyle, and personality on another person.

She'd need to be really special to deal with my shit.

I don't know what I'd do with her.

Drag her around with me?

Not much of a life for a relationship or family.

Leave her somewhere? Set up some sort of Devil May Cry-style shop?

That would shorten my range or lengthen my absences.

I'd need to find a solution to balance my obligations in my job with my obligations to a partner.

But that's sidestepping your question, friend.

Everyone craves a special someone in his or her life.

I'm no different in that respect.

I just have more baggage to deal with.

And no, I'm not soliciting.

In the slightest.

And I'm not looking for sympathy.

Maybe if I happen across the right female, I'll have the answers to all the logistics.

Until then, I'm just going to ride from town to town.

If these answers don't suffice, or raise more questions, you all know where to ask.

* * *

PMs and reviews are welcome with or without questions.

-D.


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